BETTER JUDGMENT DICTATES YOU SHOULD SKIP 'ALEX & EMMA'.Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic THERE HAS BEEN some speculation that Rob Reiner Robert "Rob" Reiner (born March 6, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, children's advocate and political activist. As an actor, Reiner first came to national prominence as Archie Bunker's and Edith Baines-Bunker's son-in-law, Michael "Meathead" Stivic, on might join Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (German pronunciation (IPA): [ˈaɐ̯nɔlt ˈaloɪ̯s ˈʃvaɐ̯ʦənˌʔɛɡɐ] in the race for California's governorship and, based on their recent movies, I say more power to them. Schwarzenegger's downward career trajectory at least is predictable. Action stars get old, audiences move on. But what happened to Reiner? His latest movie, the sweetly monotonous ``Alex & Emma'' isn't as big a misfire as, say, ``The Story of Us'' or ``Ghosts of Mississippi,'' but in a way, it's even more dispiriting dis·pir·it tr.v. dis·pir·it·ed, dis·pir·it·ing, dis·pir·its To lower in or deprive of spirit; dishearten. See Synonyms at discourage. [di(s)- + spirit.] Adj. . At least those movies failed on a grand scale. The slight ``Alex & Emma'' simply stands as one of the most boring romantic comedies ever made. There's plenty of blame to go around. Screenwriter Jeremy Leven Jeremy Leven (born 1941) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and novelist. Born in South Bend, Indiana, Leven lives in Woodbridge, Connecticut, Nantucket, and Paris. Leven was educated at St. (``The Legend of Bagger Vance''), who is to the flapper era what Kenny G is to jazz, concocted this tension-free story about Alex (Luke Wilson), a writer who must finish his novel in 30 days so he can pay off some Cuban loan sharks. Since the goons set his computer on fire, Alex is forced to hire a stenographer An individual who records court proceedings either in shorthand or through the use of a paper-punching device. A court stenographer is an officer of the court and is generally considered to be a state or public official. , Emma (Kate Hudson), and dictate his book. She takes the job even though she doesn't know him, he can't pay her, and he doesn't exactly inspire confidence. Then it gets far-fetched. For a guy facing certain death, Alex doesn't break much of a sweat dictating his book. Charlie Kaufman he is not. We watch Alex spew forth and then the film cuts away to the story he's writing, a vapid period romance that the folks at Harlequin would reject after reading the first paragraph. Said romance revolves around a love triangle A love triangle is a romantic relationship involving three people (known as a triad). While it can refer to two people independently romantically linked with a third, it usually implies that each of the three people has some kind of relationship to the other two. involving a poor tutor (Wilson again), a beautiful French woman of means (Sophie Marceau) and a winsome win·some adj. Charming, often in a childlike or naive way. [Middle English winsum, from Old English wynsum : from wynn, joy; see wen-1 au pair (Hudson) who keeps changing nationalities as Alex makes revisions. It's impossible to say which story is duller, the modern one or the flashback flash·back n. 1. An unexpected recurrence of the effects of a hallucinogenic drug long after its original use. 2. A recurring, intensely vivid mental image of a past traumatic experience. . Hudson does her best, injecting a little spirit into the movie when given the chance. But the bland Wilson makes Bill Pullman look like Al Pacino in ``Scarface.'' You know Reiner is desperate when Emma's defining characteristic is the way she opens a book and reads the last page first. Sound familiar? If you answered Harry from Reiner's ``When Harry Met Sally ...'' you deserve a prize. Treat yourself to a movie other than ``Alex & Emma.'' ALEX & EMMA - One and one half stars (PG-13: sexual content, some language) Starring: Kate Hudson, Luke Wilson. Director: Rob Reiner. Running time: 1 hr. 36 min. Playing: Wide release. In a nutshell: Two boring stories for the price of one. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Kate Hudson and Luke Wilson have 30 days to produce a romantic novel in director Rob Reiner's ``Alex & Emma.'' |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion